Welcome
The name of this course is Creating and Sustaining Enduring Principles and Educational Values in Schools and Classrooms. My name is Professor Michael Gill. We will explore "the price and promise of citizenship" (Obama, 2009) as it relates to the state of educaion in America. My contact information is: Email - mgill@nrcsd.org and Phone - (845) 942-3306.

Course Vision Statement/Goal
To assist our children in becoming "better students" and "better citizens" by teaching and sustaining enduring principles and educational values in our schools and classrooms.

Assignment for Weekend of September 19, 2015
Read chapters 1-7 of the Pact. Prepare a two page analysis focusing on the ideas of citizenship and educational values. What did you learn about the characters and yourself? How could this story resonate with students in our classroom? Write 3-7 thought provoking questions that you could use to lead a Socratic Seminar on the reading.

Read the article titled "Cocksure" below. Write a one page reflection responding to the following questions:
How can overconfidence hinder a person or organization from being successful?
What types of connections can you make between the article and education?
Does overconfidence play a negative role in your classroom? How do you deal with it?



Assignment for Week of September 26, 2015
Read chapters 8 - 20 of the Pact. Prepare a two page analysis with a continued focus on citizenship, school values, grit, respect, determination, empathy and responsibility. What did you learn about the character's journey and connections to yourself/teaching? Write 3-7 questions that you could use to facilitate a Socratic Seminar.


1. Read the chapter from Nudge. Prepare a one page analysis using the Closed Reading strategy to communicate understanding of the author's purpose in writing this chapter.
2. Complete the graphic organizer on President Obama's address. You do not need to hand this in, just fill it out and be prepared to discuss further.

3. If you missed class session, watch President Obama's address below in the links. Complete the graphic organizer below and email to the professor.

Assignment for Week of
1. Complete the PBIS model you developed in class. Then, identify the problem you will proactively address with your PBIS model, develop a plan of action and reflect on how you and your students worked with the model.
2. Read the article you choose in class. Take notes and be prepared to work with a colleauge on the article in class on Saturday.
3. Read the article "Cocksure" linked below. Participate on the discussion board a minimum of 2x.

Course Outline


Course Materials


Quotes
“Education is not the filling of a pail, but rather the lighting of a fire.” William Butler Yeats

“In a completely rational society, the best of us would aspire to be teachers and the rest of us would have to settle for something less, because passing civilization along from one generation to the next ought to be the highest honor and the highest responsibility anyone could have.” Lee Iacoca

Texts
Kohn, Aflie (2006). Beyond Discipline.
Davis, Jenkins, & Hunt (2002). The Pact.

Websites
John Wooden TED Talk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4zRJIp2wcM
Player Empathy Video
Obama speech
Cities in Crisis 2010
Cities in Crisis
What Matters for Staying On-Track
What Matters - SWD
http://www.aypf.org/documents/PresentationAllensworth.pdf
American Educator - Reform
American Educator
Atlantic - Great Teacher
Atlantic - America Rising
NY Times - Change
NY Times - Struggling in Suburbs
NY Times - Immigrants
NBC - Economy